Dogara accuses Gov Abubakar of using ghost workers to loot N400bn, shows ‘evidence’

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, has revealed paper documents allegedly showing how Governor Mohammed Abubakar of Bauchi state employed 1,200 ghost workers to divert N400 billion belonging the state since 2015.

Dogara, in a statement on Saturday by his Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs, Turaki Hassan, said Dogara made the allegation at a Peoples Democratic Party campaign rally in Dass, Dass Local Government Area of the state on Friday.

He alleged that among the faceless persons on the pay roll of the state government was a 120 year old Bappale Adamu who, according to him, was employed in July 2015 and would retire in 2023.

With salary ranging, from N39,000 to N86,000, Dogara alleged that workers bare different names and dates of birth but one Bank Verification Number (BVN).

Hassan said, “The Speaker challenged Abubakar to take him to court and promised that he would defend the allegations and added that as a lawyer he knew the law and would not level false allegations against anyone without having evidence.

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“One of the documents indicates that no fewer than 1,200 people were said to have been employed and added into the state’s payroll beginning from July 2015.

“However, one of the ghost employees by name, Bappale Adamu, was said to have been born in 1899, which is 120 years ago and started work with the state government on July 24, 2015 and will retire from the service in 2023.”

The statement added, “The speaker also wondered how Bauchi State’s monthly salary skyrocketed from N2.6bn per month in May 2015 to N7bn without recruiting additional workers, especially as the governor early in his administration, fired the political appointees made by his predecessor Isa Yuguda, which should have reduced the state’s wage bill drastically.”

He further added, that “In August 2016, political leaders and stakeholders from the state led by the Speaker sought President Mohammadu Buhari’s intervention on the non-payment of salaries which didn’t yield any result and has been the major source of disagreement between the Speaker, political leaders, stakeholders and the Bauchi state Governor.”

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